The present disclosure relates in general to mobile communication devices that interoperate with accessories and in particular to interoperation of a mobile communication device with an accessory to provide a duplex audio mode.
Mobile communication devices, such as cellular phones, have become nearly ubiquitous. Some mobile communication devices, such as the iPhone™ (made by Apple Inc., assignee of the present application), can provide users a variety of services in addition to mobile telephone service; such services can include management and playback of media content (music, videos, audiobooks, photos, etc.); storage of personal data such as calendar, contacts, and notes; Internet access; and the ability to execute various application programs that the user may choose to download and install.
Some mobile communication devices are designed to interoperate with various accessory devices (also referred to herein as accessories). For example, a mobile communication device can have a connector with a number of pins that support providing audio and/or video to an accessory, receiving audio and/or video from an accessory, providing serial communication to and/or from the accessory, providing power to and/or receiving power from the accessory, and so on. This connector can be docked or mated with a corresponding connector of an accessory, thereby allowing the exchange of various signals and data between the portable communication device and the accessory.
Accessories can provide a number of different services or service enhancements in connection with a mobile communication device. For example, some accessories may include speakers to play audio content received from the mobile communication device and/or video display screens to display video content received from the mobile communication device. Some accessories may include a microphone and may provide audio input from the microphone to the mobile communication device, e.g., allowing the mobile communication device to act as a voice recorder. Some accessories may include video and/or still image cameras and may provide video and/or image data to the mobile communication device for storage and/or playback.